This Blog contains Wildlife and Bird Photos from Walks, Safaris, Birding Trips and Vacations. Most of the pictures have been taken with my Nikon P900 and P950X cameras. On the right of the page are labels for each species of Bird/Animal etc. Click on a label and it will show all of the photos taken for that species. I am adding as much information for each species as I can from sources Wikipedia. To see any pictures at full size just click on the picture.
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Wednesday 1 July 2015
13-6-2015 GANDIA, VALENCIA - EURASIAN BLACKBIRD (MALE) (Turdus merula)
Tuesday 30 June 2015
Monday 29 June 2015
30-6-2015 VILLALONGA RIO SERPIS, VALENCIA - EUROPEAN MOORHEN (Gallinula chloropus)
Sunday 28 June 2015
28-6-2015 MONTE CORONA, VALENCIA - WOOD LEOPARD MOTH (Zeuzera pyrina)
Thursday 25 June 2015
Sunday 21 June 2015
21-6-2015 VILLALONGA RESERVOIR, VALENCIA - WHITE WAGTAIL (Motacilla alba)
Saturday 20 June 2015
27-3-2015 GALLE, SRI LANKA - HOUSE CROW (Corvus splendens)
Saturday 13 June 2015
13-6-2015 MONTE CORONA, VALENCIA - WHITE PLUME MOTH (Pterophorus pentadactyla)
13-6-2015 GANDIA, VALENCIA - EURASIAN BLACKBIRD (FEMALE) (Turdus merula)
Wednesday 10 June 2015
10-6-2015 ELS POBLETS, ALICANTE - HOUSE SPARROW (MALE) (Passer domesticus)
Tuesday 9 June 2015
9-6-2015 VILLALONGA RESERVOIR, VALENCIA - LITTLE EGRET (Egretta garzetta)
Monday 1 June 2015
1-6-2015 MONTE CORONA, VALENCIA - WHITE WAGTAIL (Motacilla alba)
Sunday 31 May 2015
31-5-2015 VILLALONGA RESERVOIR, VALENCIA - MALLARD (FEMALE AND YOUNG) (Anas platyrhynchos)
The mallard (/ˈmælɑːrd, ˈmælərd/) or wild duck (Anas platyrhynchos) is a dabbling duck that breeds throughout the temperate and subtropical Americas, Eurasia, and North Africa. It has been introduced to New Zealand, Australia, Peru, Brazil, Uruguay, Argentina, Chile, Colombia, the Falkland Islands, and South Africa. This duck belongs to the subfamily Anatinae of the waterfowl family Anatidae. Males have green heads, while the females (hens or ducks) have mainly brown-speckled plumage. Both sexes have an area of white-bordered black or iridescent purple or blue feathers called a speculum on their wings; males especially tend to have blue speculum feathers. The mallard is 50–65 cm (20–26 in) long, of which the body makes up around two-thirds the length. The wingspan is 81–98 cm (32–39 in) and the bill is 4.4 to 6.1 cm (1.7 to 2.4 in) long. It is often slightly heavier than most other dabbling ducks, weighing 0.7–1.6 kg (1.5–3.5 lb). Mallards live in wetlands, eat water plants and small animals, and are social animals preferring to congregate in groups or flocks of varying sizes.
The female lays 8 to 13 creamy white to greenish-buff spotless eggs, on alternate days. Incubation takes 27 to 28 days and fledging takes 50 to 60 days. The ducklings are precocial and fully capable of swimming as soon as they hatch.
The mallard is considered to be a species of least concern by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). Unlike many waterfowl, mallards are considered an invasive species in some regions. It is a very adaptable species, being able to live and even thrive in urban areas which may have supported more localised, sensitive species of waterfowl before development. The non-migratory mallard interbreeds with indigenous wild ducks of closely related species through genetic pollution by producing fertile offspring.
Complete hybridisation of various species of wild duck gene pools could result in the extinction of many indigenous waterfowl. This species is the main ancestor of most breeds of domestic duck, and its naturally evolved wild gene pool has been genetically polluted by the domestic and feral mallard populations.